


Reset

by Mikii



Series: Rewind [1]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Universe, Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-12
Updated: 2017-08-12
Packaged: 2018-12-14 11:14:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,923
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11781996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mikii/pseuds/Mikii
Summary: Chiaki Nanami discovers she can “rewind” deaths within the simulation.But at a cost.





	Reset

 

\---

**ACT 1**

**RESET**

\---

\---

\---

She first discovers it following the Imposters first death. Screams echo around her within the lodge as everyone stares upon the motionless body of “Byakuya Togami” beneath the table.

She’d failed.

 _“What is this!?”_ Nekomaru roared, hands clutching his head as he stared in horror.

She was supposed to monitor them. She was supposed to help them recover. She was supposed to prevent this from happening.

 _“Th-This… This is impossible…!”_ Kazuichi’s voice cried, voice wobbling before he became defensive. _“Don’t mess with me! This must be some kind of mistake!”_

Her fingers grasped around the straps of her backpack tightly, knuckles turning white.

 _“This… This can’t be real blood, right? I-It’s gotta be something like jam or sauce…”_ Ibuki insisted. _“C-C-Cause…. if not then th-this…”_

Her lips pressed together flatly. This wasn’t meant to happen.

Nobody was supposed to die.

 _“...On this tropical paradise known as Jabberwock Island the very first murder has finally taken place!”_ Monobear’s laughter bounced off the walls as the students looked at him in horror as he went on in glee.

 _“Byakuya… was killed by one of_ **_you!”_ **

No.

This wasn’t fair.

This shouldn’t be happening.

This **_couldn’t_ ** be happening.

-and then, suddenly it wasn’t.

Chiaki Nanami gave a jerk as she suddenly found herself standing _outside_ of the old hotel lodge. The night air blew across her cheeks and ruffled her hair with a cool breeze and the sound of music blared from behind her inside the building where the party appeared to be in full swing if the laughter and cheers said anything about it.

What-

“Oi, are you listening to me?”

She blinked at the annoyed voice, turning her head to find Fuyuhiko stood before her with an irritated expression upon his face.

The girl gave him a blank look and tilted her head. “....Huh?”

His nostrils flared. “I _said_ what the hell are you doing here? Why are you even alone out here? Shouldn’t you be inside with the rest of them?”

She stared. This felt… familiar.

“....I’m standing guard to stop Monobear from sneaking inside.” Her lips formed the response automatically.

She’d met Fuyuhiko earlier.

“Heh… How diligent of you…”

They’d had this conversation before.

When the yakuza boy left, Chiaki stared after him as if in a daze as she attempted to quickly piece this all together. But even with her amazing puzzle solving she found herself stumped.

“Chiaki-chan….” The concerned tone came from her side and as she looked down the gamer was about to gently scold Monomi for calling her by her given name in public. But then her eyes saw Monomi’s expression. She looked _scared_ . When the rabbit spoke, her voice was quiet and laced with nerves. “Chiaki-chan…. what did you **_do?”_ **

She opened her mouth but no words came forth. She didn’t know.

What **_had_ ** she done?

\---

\---

 _“This… This can’t be real blood, right? I-It’s gotta be something like jam or sauce…”_ Ibuki insisted. _“C-C-Cause… if not then th-this…”_

Chiaki stared at the blood pooling from her classmates body.

Again.

It had happened again.

Somehow… someway…. She had gone back. To a few hours before the murder had occurred - _even though that shouldn’t be possible._

_“Upupupupu! On this tropical paradise known as Jabberwock Island the very first murder has finally taken place!”_

She squeezed her eyes shut and wished it away.

And it was granted.

\---

\---

The next time around she realised she should wait and figure out how to prevent the blackout. That was what allowed the killer the opportunity to murder.

She investigated with Sonia and found the irons in the warehouse. Every minute spent after the death not going back set her on edge. Was there only a small time frame between the time of death and the moment she rewinded where she had the capability to go back? After all, if somebody “died” in the simulation they would essentially become braindead outside of it. To undo that - to bring the person back to life - whatever she was doing went beyond the current events inside the simulation and reached out to interfere with the students brains directly.

What manner of ‘hacking’ would even make that possible? If this was a game it would be classified as godmodding and considered cheating.

…Was she cheating?

When the moment came that she did “rewind” however and returned to being outside the lodge, Chiaki spun on her heel and ran inside the building – to the surprise of Monomi and Fuyuhiko – and turned the irons off thus preventing a power surge.

The party came to an end and nobody died.

She’d succeeded.

\---

\---

“Chiaki, I-I don’t know what you did tonight… But whatever it was, pwease don’t do it again!” Monomi pleaded with her paws pressed together.

Monomi was the only other individual aware of the rewind. All the other students remained blissfully unaware of the fact their friend had died several times over tonight. Even Monobear appeared ignorant to it - thankfully.

“I’m sorry for worrying you, Monomi,” she whispered, giving her companion a soft smile as she sat on her bed and patted the crying rabbit. She didn’t understand what had transpired tonight either. How she had been able to do such a feat which should be impossible – it didn’t make sense.

Later when Monomi had left (off to battle one of the Monobeasts and claim a new island) and she stood to get changed and remove her clothes, Chiaki caught sight of something odd.

Staring down at the inside of her right wrist, her eyebrows drew together at the sight of a dark patch present. It was no bigger than her thumbnail and looked off-colour from the rest of her skin. It was almost as if her avatar hadn’t loaded properly. As if a few pixels had been interrupted and were now glitching-

Her heart lodged in her throat at the prospect and when she moved her hand to brush her fingers across the area, an unpleasant sensation shot up her fingertips like electric and left a numb sensation. She yanked her hand away and kneaded feeling back into her fingers.

After a while she threw her night clothes on and tugged her sleeves down to hide the anomaly from view so neither Monomi or Monobear would see it.

Maybe it was temporary.

She could hope that, right?

\---

\---

Two days passed.

And then Nagito Komaeda died.

Found on the beach with no external injuries, she was one of the first to find him when they noted he was missing from dinner. He still held that carefree and gentle smile upon his face even in death.

He didn’t deserve to die.

“I failed…” Byakuya whispered as they knelt on the beach beside the luckster, face pale and engulfed with grief as they clenched their teeth. Sonia placed a consoling hand upon their shoulder as tears fell down her face and screams and panic swallowed everyone whole.

Chiaki made a mental apology to Monomi as she rewinded.

\---

\---

She knew she couldn’t **_just_ ** rewind however. That didn’t solve the issue.

Someone - or multiple someones - had been manipulated by Monobear’s words into killing.

Chiaki arranged a prompt visit to the beach earlier that morning with everyone invited. When she mentioned a BBQ being present Byakuya hopped on board immediately and assisted in sorting everything out and handling ‘security.’

She tried not to look at Monomi who stared at her sadly from afar.

The skin around her wrist itched and her fingers twitched as she resisted the urge to scratch it.

\---

\---

When she spotted Teruteru purposefully avoiding Nagito she knew he was the one and she approached him for conversation, ignoring and shutting down his various innuendos. (“Want me to rub some sunscreen on your body? I’ve been told my hands are _verrrrry_ talented outside of the kitchen too, uhu!”)

“Did something happen between you and Komaeda-san?”

The chef froze and instantly clammed up, stammering and stuttering. “W-Wh-What? P-Preposterous! Haha, wh- what are y’ talkin’ ‘bout? O’ cour’ nah!”

She probably didn’t have enough hope shards for him to confess what had transpired. But she also didn’t have the time to collect them all from him.

He was going to kill his classmate in just a few hours.

“I believe in you, Hanamura-san.”

When he stared at her in surprise - and was that guilt she saw? - she just smiled at him encouragingly. He wasn’t a murderer. Not in this do-over. He had another chance.

“I’m glad I was granted the chance to befriend you. I want us all to get along and… if something did happen, I hope you know that you can rely on us.” A pause and as she looked out into the ocean her expression hardened. She wouldn’t let any of them disappear. She’d protect them. Even if it _did_ mean being a lousy cheater.

When Mahiru came over (“Hey! I hope you’re not making her uncomfortable, Teruteru!”) the discussion came to an end and she wasn’t sure if she’d said enough to sway his mind.

But by the end of the day everyone was alive.

That’s all that mattered.

\---

\---

Teruteru came clean about how Nagito had stated his wish to commit a murder. There was an uproar instantly and some wished to tie him up to prevent him having free reign. Others protested to this and eventually it was agreed they would always have at least two individuals watching over him and he wasn’t to be left alone.

Chiaki knew Nagito was only acting this way because of the circumstances Monobear had forced them into. Otherwise, he would never be a murderer of his classmates. She believed in him and that was why she continued to defend him to the others and insist he join in their fun activities.

Hajime trusted her and followed step, and one by one the others agreed if somewhat hesitantly. Chiaki watched with a fond smile as hope shard after hope shard was obtained between them all.

Being able to see the former Despairs bonding was worth any unfortunate side-effects on her part.

\---

\---

When she next checked her reflection the ‘glitch’ as she referred to it as had grown larger, now beginning to crawl up her arm. It looked like rot spreading.

She placed another long-sleeved shirt on and put it out of view.

\---

\---

Monobear grew restless from their “boring murderless days” and shoved a further motive at them in the form of a video game. Byakuya loudly declared that nobody would play it and kept watch over it all night with Peko, alternating between security with Akane and Nekomaru. Nobody disagreed since none of them trusted Monobear.

The days passed by and one week faded into the next. Eventually their fears regarding the video game began to fade and after a long discussion they decided to ease up on the security - just a bit.

The following day Mahiru Koizumi died.

\---

\---

She rewinded.

When they arranged for Nekomaru and Akane to be on first watch, Chiaki intervened and asked to go in Akane’s place.

Taking watch over the machine with the coach, she felt guilty when she asked him to go fetch some medication from the pharmacy after claiming her head hurt. And because the older man trusted her he went with no problem, promising to be back from the other island soon.

In the time he was absent she played the video game and passed it easily - she _was_ the SHSL gamer after all - obtaining a prize and staring at the photographs within it with a narrowed gaze.

She later tore them to pieces and threw them into the trash can inside her cottage.

The glitch had now reached her elbow.

\---

\---

Monobear didn’t give up.

The Despair Disease was difficult to combat since there was no way to ‘prevent’ it when it was a motive belonging to Monobear.

The first time it was Ibuki who died.

When Chiaki rewinded however it was different individuals who were infected with the disease.

Instead of Akane, Nagito and Ibuki it was Sonia, Hiyoko and Kazuichi. The student killed was Hajime instead.

Then Gundam.

Then it was Teruteru.

Each time it changed, the situation and the setup. The murderer and the victim.

The glitch had infected her entire right arm and shoulder, now beginning to creep its way onto her torso.

She purposefully avoided looking at her reflection when changing.

\---

\---

Monobear was aware of her rewinding.

She suspected this the first time she went back after Ibuki’s death and the victims of the Disease changed. If there was one thing she knew regarding her ‘hacking’ it was that every instance she rewinded everyone did and said the exact same things unless she interfered and altered the course of events.

Monobear had changed his behaviour without any input from her.

She didn’t call him out on it but it did make sense for him to be aware if Monomi was as well.

The realisation that he was conscious  of what she was doing made her nauseous.

She continued to rewind.

\---

\---

Chiaki sat on the steps within Nezumi Castle, a GameBoy in her hands as she stared blankly at the “GAME OVER” screen after dying. This was the only location on all of the islands where neither Monomi or Monobear could enter.

Monomi was upset with her.

Guilt ate at her heart knowing that fact but she couldn’t stop. She knew she was breaking the rules. She knew whatever she was doing wasn’t meant to be possible and however she was making it happen was going against the rules of the simulation. She was a lousy hacker. A cheater. The side-effects it was causing to her avatar was proof enough that it was a dangerous thing as it continued to eat away at her. If Monobear were to ever find a way to steal this ability for himself it would be bad.

But she couldn’t _not_ bring them back.

“Nanami?”

Lifting her head at the voice she found Hajime walking towards her. He’d died once. She’d seen it. The shadows beneath his neck at this angle looked eerily familiar to the dark bruises that had covered his pale throat like a choker-

**“Nanami?”**

She jumped at his voice, blinking away the image. He was giving her a look of concern. How long had she been spacing out for?

“Ah… Hinata-san.” His shoulders slumped in relief at her eventual response.

“Uh, is it okay if I sit with you?”

“Mhhm.” She shuffled aside and returned her gaze to her console as she restarted the game. He seated himself beside her with a comfortable space between them.

“Are you hiding from Saionji-san?” she asked without removing her eyes from the screen.

“Huh?” Hajime gave her a look before grimacing slightly. “Uh… hah… Yeah, the whole drill sergeant motif is pretty tiring.” The Despair Disease seemed fond of keeping things fresh. Hiyoko was intimidating to begin with. Having her then yelling at them to “shut the hell up and do five laps around the island” was just overkill. It didn’t help that Akane and Nidai seemed to love it, going along with the whole charade and encouraging the dancer. Even Mahiru wasn’t spared from the girls wrath.

“Togami and Koizumi were trying to get her to accept treatment from Tsumiki last I left them,” Hajime went on. He paused before casting her a glance. “Actually… I wanted to ask if _you_ were okay, Nanami.”

She blinked. Her character on screen died - again - when she failed to make a jump, having become distracted. “Huh? Me?” She looked at him in confusion.

“You’ve been… different these past few days. Togami thought you might be ill as well but when Tsumiki checked you, you had no fever so we passed it off. But... it doesn’t change the fact  that you’ve not been acting yourself.”

She frowned.

Had she… really been acting so different? It was hard to keep a clear timeline of things when she’d rewinded so much. The impact of seeing so many repeated deaths of those she considered her friends - it was logical for it to have affected her somewhat. Especially lately when she was still at a loss of how to prevent it.

Perhaps she had been acting off.

“....Sorry. Thank you for worrying about me... but I’ll be okay.” She stopped herself from tagging on ‘I think’ to the end, knowing that wouldn’t help.

He still looked doubtful. A moment passed and he pulled something out of his pocket. “Here, this is for you.”

Her eyes fell on the power gauntlet and in an instant her eyes lit up. “Ah-!  This is a really rare item!” As she grabbed the console and moved it around in her hands with a grin, Hajime relaxed upon seeing her smile for the first time in a few days.

“This seems a little…” Her expression softened, lips quirking. “I feel like this might raise a flag.”

“Huh?”

\---

\---

One day she rewinded and there was no Despair Disease.

She went to breakfast, dreading who she would see afflicted today but nobody was. Not noticeably anyway.

The only one who appeared to be acting any differently was herself since she was on edge and paranoid.

The numbing sensation had spread along her back.

\---

\---

The Despair Disease may have stopped.

But the motives continued. Blackmail. Money. Starvation. Love. Fame.

The murders kept occurring. Poisoning. Stabbing. Shooting. Drowning. Electrocution.

Always a different victim. Always a different method.

The days began blending together. She found it difficult to piece together which event happened on what day - what had happened, what had been erased. On more than one occasion she’d mention something only to receive confused looks when they had no idea what she speaking about.

Even her diary was a scrambled mess. She was guilty to admit she’d become so fixated on rewinding lately that she’d been lacking in her reports. That was partially due to being afraid of how those outside the simulation must think of her now - her actions could be considered deviation from her original role. What if she was damaging the simulation? Was she considered a threat?

She felt exhausted as well. She hadn’t been napping since she’d been so determined on working to prevent murders and talking fellow students out of killings they were planning. She was still a young AI, it tired her out to be so active for such prolonged periods of time.

Monomi had seen her body and the glitch overtaking her one day and had been horrified. The entire right side of her body from the neck down was now afflicted, pixels off-coloured and distorted as if the very data of her avatar was corrupted. She had begun wearing gloves and tights to hide this.

“Chiaki-chan, you have to stop this! It’s destroying you! It’s not meant to happen! Th-That Monobear must have pwanned this! You can’t do it! Pwomise me!”

When she had stared at Chiaki with pleading eyes full of tears, the gamer had swallowed past the lump in her throat and shaken her head. She couldn’t make that promise.

Monomi refused to speak to her after that.

\---

\---

One day the intended murderer came after _her._

Chiaki narrowly missed the sword aiming for her as Peko swung it - a **_real_ ** sword. The swordswoman kept a stoic face showing no emotion as she cornered the gamer in the library. Chiaki hadn’t told anyone of her intention to visit the building that morning but Peko seemed too prepared and determined for this to be a simple coincidence of the wrong time and place.

Was she infected by the Despair Disease again? Occasionally that did reappear. Had something happened with Fuyuhiko? Had Monobear told her something?

She fell against a wall, using it for support.

“Pekoyama-san-”

It was no good. She had to rewind. If she died she couldn’t be here to prevent any of these things from happening.

But Peko true to her SHSL title was quick and the next thing Chiaki knew there was a sharp blade imbedded within her right shoulder.

It… didn’t hurt.

She stared wide-eyed at Peko hovering over her. The braided girl’s expression twisted when Chiaki made no sound of pain nor bled from her shoulder. A strange liquid did begin to seep from the area but it was like dark sludge. Peko stared at her as if she was a monster.

“What… What **_are_ ** you?”

Chiaki felt her face paling before she quickly slammed her eyes shut and erased this moment.

\---

\---

The next time it was Kazuichi. She winced when he began trying to shove her over the metal railing at Sea King Industries head first. No matter how much she yelled at him to calm down he continued crying and babbling. “Y-You’ll all see-! Sonia-san too! She’ll see how cool I am and nobody will laugh at me!!”

The moment she was thrown over and went sailing through the air she rewinded.

\---

\---

Then it was Akane. She suffered a black eye from the gymnasts fists who then proceeded to throw the gamer around before clamping hands tightly around her throat. Fingernails bit into her skin and she released a choke as she tried to push the heavier girl off her. A trail of black liquid trickled down her nose from where she’d been hit once.

“Ngggrrrhrhhhhhh!!” Akane growled animalistically at her, no sign of the laughing and joking girl from earlier present. What had happened?

She managed to rewind only seconds before she blacked out.

\---

\---

The first person she met after several consecutive attempts on her life was Hajime and she instinctively flinched away from him. He gave her a confused and slightly hurt look and she felt guilty. She shouldn’t be acting like this. She wasn’t created to act like this.

Maybe she really had contracted the Despair Disease. Or maybe the glitch was affecting her in ways more than appearance. Was the black sludge inside her toxic? Was it a virus? Was **_she_ ** a virus?

Hajime gave her the same speech about his concerns over her before gifting her the power gauntlet again. She replied the exact same dialogue, like a character in her video games who was destined to provide the same pieces of text over and over.

As she held the console in her hands, the smile felt foreign and unfamiliar on her face. How long had it been since she’d smiled?

She looked at Hajime who appeared delighted with her reaction. She held the console tightly against her chest and spoke the same line.

“I feel like this might raise another flag.”

“Huh?”

She wondered idly how long it would be until Hajme attempted to kill her.

\---

\---

After Mahiru made an attempt on her life, Chiaki visited Monobear.

“Why are you doing this?”

“Hmmmm? Doing what exactly? You’ll have to be more specific there, I’m a busy bear!” he replied as he tilted his head innocently.

She frowned. She knew he was manipulating different students into killing her each time. Sometimes it was obvious he had infected them with the Despair Disease to make their personalities unstable. Other times she was certain he had met with the student in private and emotionally manipulated - or blackmailed - them into it.

“We won’t let you win,” she said, a firmness behind her words. “I won’t let anybody die.”

The bear grinned back at her. “Upupupu… You say that Nanami-san, but just how long do you have left before you vanish?” His eyes shined with glee as he stared at her body as if he perversely peering directly at the infected skin underneath it. “Y’know nobody likes a rotten cheater! And you’re rotting from the inside out, upupupu!”

He was still laughing when she turned and walked away.

\---

\---

One day she looked in the mirror and realised the glitch had begun to crawl up her throat. She took to wearing a scarf partially hiding her lower face.

“Bwahahaha! You dare to imitate the Dark Lord Gundam Tanaka, a lowly human such as yourself?” the animal breeder bellowed when he saw her new item of fashion. “Your power level is far too low to even attempt to be on my level! …Hm, but perhaps with training… Yes, yes, consider yourself lucky, thoughtful one! For I, the great Gundam Tanaka have decided to give you my precious time and knowledge!”

Her body began to feel more numb with each passing day. Even the emotions she’d been programmed to feel seemed to become more and more bland.

When you’d seen so many consecutive deaths and dead bodies in a row, the shock began to wear off.

One day she found herself kneeling over the body of Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu during investigation. Her attention turned to the boys decapitated head and when she moved to pick it up, Sonia screamed.

“D-D-Don’t pick up the head!!! _Are you crazy?_ Do you _want_ to get cursed, lady!?” Kazuichi screamed.

Chiaki stared back at them blandly and it took a while for it to click that her actions weren’t ordinary. She placed the head back where she found it but everyone present still looked restless and eyed her warily.

Her fingernails dug into her sleeve as she scratched her arm.

\---

\---

All of her limbs and back had been claimed now. She felt no sensation. No touch. No cold. No heat.

She wondered if she really was going to vanish away completely.

She wished she knew what her father or big brother would have done in this situation.

She couldn’t figure out any solution to this neverending nightmare.

\---

\---

One day she found herself stood in her cottage at night and couldn’t remember how or when she’d arrived there. The last thing she recalled was being on the beach that morning.

Her memories were being eaten away as well as her body.

\---

\---

She caught sight of her reflection whilst changing one day and noted further pixels had been corrupted since she last looked.

She didn’t remember rewinding to have them appear.

Was she forgetting entire days now?

The next morning she awoke and even more had been eaten away.

She held firmly onto her determination. She wasn’t scared. _She wasn’t._ She was an AI. She wasn’t even alive - she didn’t exist in reality. The notion of ‘death’ or ‘dying’ shouldn’t terrify her.

So then why did her heart thump erratically when she considered she might disappear?

\---

\---

She dropped the knife with a startling clang as it fell against the diner floor, staring in horror at the body of Mikan Tsumiki laid motionless before her.

Blood. There was so much blood.

It was on the knife. And all over the floor and-

Her.

Her breath caught in her throat. What had happened? What was going on? Why was she holding a knife!?

She’d been- she’d been in her cottage just a moment ago- hadn’t she?- It’d been night- Now it was daytime- she’d been going to sleep-

She turned her face to look out the window only to meet the eyes of Junko Enoshima peering back at her from the window reflection.

She screamed.

Stumbling against a chair, when she looked back in the window it was just her own reflection but that wasn’t- it’d been-

“Oi, we heard a scream! What’s going on- _oh shit!”_ Fuyuhiko appeared in the doorway with Nagito and Hajime, the three boys dressed in swimming trunks.

Hajime quickly rushed over to Mikan as Fuyuhiko looked towards her. She saw his eyes take in the blood coating her hands and clothes before his eyes narrowed suspiciously. “What happened?” Before she could reply, another voice interrupted them:

“Hey- She’s alive!”

All three of them snapped their attention towards Hajime. He remained by Mikan’s side as he peered up at them. “Run to the hospital and get medical supplies! And someone grab Pekoyama - she said she has medical training!!”

Chiaki felt the floor fading out beneath her.

Mikan was alive.

She was going to live.

Chiaki didn’t have to rewind.

Except.

No.

If Mikan lived… She’d tell everyone that Chiaki had stabbed her- because she had, hadn’t she? She’d somehow- someway- she was broken- she was infected- she should be deleted-

**“Nanami!”**

She met Hajime’s frantic gaze who was staring at her with panic as he held onto a pale Mikan. When their eyes locked he grit his teeth together. “Fuyuhiko’s gone to get Peko and Nagito’s gone to the hospital, go help him!”

She didn’t move.

**_“NANAMI!”_ **

“I… I’m sorry.”

She rewinded.

\---

\---

She ignored the knocks on her cottage door.

She couldn’t see any of them. She couldn’t speak to them or be with them. She was dangerous.

It was ironic. She’d gone through all of this to keep them safe and in the end the biggest danger was now her.

It was probably for the best that she be deleted.

Monomi had been right hadn’t she?

She wasn’t sure how long she remained there, with various and different people coming to her door to try and coax her out. Hidden beneath her scarf, hoodie and blankets upon her bed she simply did the only thing she was good at.

She played games.

She’d completed this particular one seven times when the door suddenly opened causing her to look over.

“Hey, Nanami.” Hajime greeted her with a warm smile as he entered. She saw him glance back - presumably others were outside - before he closed the door softly.

“How did you get in?” she asked, blinking. It had been locked.

“Monobear let me in. He was reluctant at first but we needed to bring you this.” He placed a plate of food on the floor by her bed. When was the last time she had eaten, again? Not that it mattered - she didn’t need to eat to survive even if she was programmed to feel hunger. She wasn’t real after all.

She stared at it for a long time before speaking. “Thank you. I’ll eat it later… I think.”

He nodded, allowing a long moment of silence to extend between them. She waited for the inevitable.

“Nanami...” He sighed. “Did… something happen? You refuse to come out of your cottage. It wasn’t long ago you seemed really excited for the beach.”

“Mhhm, that was fun,” she admitted, lowering her gaze.

“Wha- no I mean, we haven’t gone yet. We were meant to go today.” Oh. “The girls want you to come too. Uh, Mioda is really excited about seeing you in a bikini. She wanted me to tell you she has some you can try on?” He scratched his cheek awkwardly when mentioning the latter part.

She said nothing.

He frowned. “Well, if anything changes… we’re all here waiting. Owari was planning on breaking your window to get in just so you know which would be breaking a rule. Nidai had to physically restrain her as we begged Monobear to let us in.” He turned to leave before stopping abruptly. “Oh. Before I go - here.”

Even before she looked up she knew what gift would be waiting for her. Chiaki reached out and accepted the gloved shaped console. “Thank you, Hinata-san.”

He raised an eyebrow. “What, not going to say anything about flags?”

She froze. Her eyes shot up to meet his and his forced smile gave way to confusion at the intensity of her gaze. “Uh, yeah?”

He didn’t even seem aware of what he’d said or he was at least unaware of the importance of it.

“What… flags?”

“Huh? Uh…” He scratched his temple before frowning. “Um… I don’t… know? Ah, I don’t know why I actually said that. Sorry.” He gave her an apologetic smile.

The moment of hope that had been blossoming was quickly squashed down. It was just a flook.

She was still alone.

\---

\---

Whenever she heard a body di͙̦̝̝̗͝scovery announcement she rewinded. She’d lost her entire body below her neck now. Her face was also suffering, her right vision partially gone.

Even a scarf wouldn’t hide the damage now. It was impossible for her to leave the cottage.

They continued to bring her meals as she remained hidden beneath her bed sheets. They too҉k͘ tur̕ns, with whoever visited opting to stay a few moments to speak and attempt to coax her out.

They all failed.

Then, o͜͡n̛e day it was Monobear who brought the food.

“Here you go, kid.”

She glared at him.

“Puhuh, if looks could kill I’d be dead where I stood! What happened to the innocent Cḩ̶͞i͡a҉͢k̨̧i̢ ̷N͞a͟͡nami I once knew?” he asked. “Oh right-! My bad, we killed her years ago!!” He cov̸e͜͜ŗ̴e͘d his mouth beneath his paws as he giggled. “Because it’s nọ̢t͏̘̯̪̤̟ ̧͕̞̝͞l҉͎̙̪̙͇ike _you’re_ the real Chiaki. You’re a fake. A cheap replacement. Maybe you should be the SHSL Imposter instead, huh?”

Heŗ̻ ̡͕͙͜ͅf̱̺̟̤̳̦͔̱͈̕͟i͎͜s̡̝̭͚͎ts clenched in her lap.

Monobear grinned. “Joking aside, let’s g̯̥̙͙̹͕̲͖̳͘e̡̮͕̲̻̗̟̰̕t̫̗ ̢̘̦̝͕̝ḏ̥͉͕̞̜͎̙ͅown to business! Amidst all this dizzying despair I actually came beca̧͖u̦̝̱̰͈̻͜͠s҉͚̬̠̕͠ͅe̶͍̤̖̩̺̜͓̙͞ ̛̜͔̝Iͅ ̷̟͖͓̗͍̺̩͖̼͞h̭̜͖͍̥a̷̢̱͓̠̮̤v̯̫̣̟͖̬͚e a proposition for you.”

“Not interested.”

“Hey, at least hear a bear out!” He c omplained. “Let’s face it, the way that gross rot is spreading you probably only have a few more att empts at that cheating ability of yours before it’s gam e over!”

She l̠̼͖͚̫̰̄̽͊̇o̡̻̰̻ͦ̐o̸͈̩̺͎͎̾͛̒̇́͘͢k̡̢͍̥̻̮̹͓͆̂̋̒ͭ̍̿ē̮̯̲͕͓̮͈ͪ̔̚ͅd̥̭͈̲̹̃̊̈͢ ̸̛̫͎̼̹͕ͨ͊ͤ̄̚͞ͅȃ͔̖̭̘̣̂̄̏w̡̤̜͉͚̟̫̿̔͑̈ͭ͠a̷̩͙̓ͧ̿̓ͨͮͧ͢ẙ̛̗̮̗̳̭͔̟ͪ͒͗̍ͯ͐ͥ ͛̆͏̮͚͖f̪̺͐̋̌̇̚r͕̞̫̱͈̯̳̣͖ͣ̌̍ͯ̚om him. His grin widened.

“So with that in mind… what would you say if I told you i̎͑҉͓̞̘̥͖̹̩t̝̯ͬͣ ̢̻̗̭̣̫̘͕ͤ̔̀ͨw̥̭͙͉̪̙̳̲̻̉̇͊́͗̽͊̾̚͞ā̠͓͍̬̪̪̪̊̈ş̲͚͇̲̲̟̱̮̒̇̅ͪ̊͑͛ ̷̰͙͈͍͈̝̰̟̎̑ͥ͐͐ͪp̬̳̰̓ͣ̕o̶̲̥͙̳̼̬͗͐̇̐̉ͣͧͅs̡̙͚̋ͦ̔ͬ͟s̻̓̇̕͜ible for everyone to graduate _including_ you!”

“That’s-”

“Impossible? Nọ̺͈̹̫ͭͫ̽̈͑ͥ̈́̈́t̸̸͔͚̬̹̬̞̝̉h̡̧̤̜̦̆̄̌̂̚ͅǐ̧̟̜̪̯̦̘͕n̷͚̹̦̬͉͇̻̥̍̐ͦ̒̆̊ͅg’s imposs ible if you believe in it hard enough! I mea͌͆̑͛͗̈́͒͏̢̬̟͇n̞̂͐̈̆́̆͑̚ͅ ̞̬̫̣ͩ̔w͓̺̯̪̬̉̿̑̐ͦ̎h̴͇̱͔͓̺̊̏̈̚o͕͚̟͍͉͋̿ͦ̇̓͘͢ ̘̹̄̃̿͜w̡̡͙͕̗̱͖͔̜ͨ̉̂̑ould have tho ught it possible for a sim̺͍̟p̳͈͖l̶̙̙͟e̶̢̼̩̪͓̜͢ͅ ͉̥̝̝̳͘h̦͞ͅi̘͎̞͘g̵͓̤̭̬͖ͅh̵͙̯͔͉̘͘͞ ̷͈̫̻̘̼̳͟͡s̛̰̜̟̘c̼͈̫͇̮̕h͇͚o̷͍̣͉͇̜̠̰o̵̡͕͎̞͈l̸̡̫̻͈̞̠̻ ҉҉͖̰͖̭̫͔̬ͅg͈̹̖̣̗̼i̩̻̬͇͍͖̘͚r̡͉̹̯̘͚l̴͍͚̳̺͢ ͎͚̫̬͖͞t҉̗͍͍̼o̷̡͚̥̙͙͕͝ͅ be the catalyst in starting the mos t despair-inducing incident in the history of mankind and plu nging the wo͈̹͔̙͜ŗ̫͓̞l҉̗͇d͞͏̵͙̗̱̘͈̺͉̻ ̴̭͍̭̩̼i̡̼̦͈͘n̷̞̝̮̮̲̣̕͠t̼̪̦̠͕̞̮͓̻o̬͓͠ ̖͈̳̱̝͇̫̳d̶͎̜ȩ̠̥͇s͏͖̺͚̪̳̦̳͚p̷̰̘̬̰͍̰͝a̷̛̤͕̟̦̜̲̤̰i̦̦͓̱̜r? Nobody!! But it happened! The fact t hose suckers out there are in this simulation is proof of that, upupupu!”

“...”

“Cm’o n, jus̬̟̜̻͚̗͞͠t̤̼ ͔͓̟͓͎ͅͅ ḵ̰̦̟͖͘͟e̮̠͚̜̗͍͖e̢̖̫p̸̛̙͘ ̢̟͍̬̜a̭̪̜̠̼̺͘n͕͘ͅ ͏̴͖͎͕͚̘̱ͅơ̢̼̳̥̜̠͖̻͍̪͝p̧̹̙͔̥̱̣̖e̵̲n̸̘̳̺̤ ̡̧̲̟͕̺̺̬ḙ̴͈͖̮̜͙͈͢a͈̘̳̝̘̲͉̼̙͟͞͝r͈͓͎͉ ̨͚̝̗͞a̵̮͘n̨͜͏͖̭̻d̨̖̟̤͍̠̠̯̕ ̫̭͍̩̙̕͞ͅl͎̼͈̱̖̱i̸̶̠̠͓̼̣͘ͅs̡͉̺̬͔̹͚̮t͔͜͡e̶͙̪͙̲͙͇͎n̷҉̵̻͇͖̺.̷̛̘̘̙̮̮̺ͅ”̵̮̲͘ ͓͙H̵̡͇͙̲͔̮̟̞̕i͍͍̫s̖͎̞͓͓̺̱͜ ̛̩̝̫̜̯͓̦͖ͅe͙̣̥ͅx̶̴͚͕̼͕̹̦̱̩̻ pression darkened an̴̨̞̺̠͎͙̣d̢͖̻͟ ̢̛̖͓̝͟h̨̺e̢̠͉̠͖̻̳͚̱͡ ͏̡̟̘̜͠l̺̳͎͙̦͢͜e̢̹͇̟͚̥̕ͅe̛͚̙̭̳r͙̭̤͍̱̦̭̯e̹̕d͏̸̳̙͍̰̼ ̷̝̫͓̼a̢̗̭̩̫t̫̩̬͞ ̕҉̫̤͉͙̹̦̬̱ͅh͙͕̤̼̜͔̙͜e̶̪͖͕̦̞͚͚̟r̢̘͉͉͈͔̺̖͡.̢͖̥͔͓̘͟ͅ ̶̠̭͜͜“Let’s have a chat. From on̼͕̗͉̝̰e̛͍̼̺͉̰̝ͅ ̸̸̴̠͎̪A̵̡͎̦̲̖̞̭̱Į̛̣̰̦̫͎͚ ̡͠҉̥̮̤͈͓͈͇̞t͝͏̣͓͉͡o̻̖̺͓ ̥̤̕͢a̶̹̞̥̬ͅn̟͎͎̗̺o̙̼̝̼ṭ̶̩ͅh̨̛̲̫̩̬̘̥̘͜e̩̖̻̥͚͔͈̹̜͜r… hm?~”

Her l ips pressed  flatly togethe r as the bear drew near̴̴͕͓̠̪̦̝̲e̴̲̻̯̳r͙͇̫̕.̛̭͎̰͙̤̟͘ ̢̙̮̪̝̦̟̩̻͢ͅS̴͎̱̠͚͈͚̳̭͜ḩ̦̗̮͈̝̭͟ȩ̩̜͈̠̖̠̘̟͇̕ ̧̼̭ş̬̠̰̘͢͠h̛̺ọ̶̰̻u҉̞̤l͡͏̺̫̪̬̩̠̫͝d̫̣̘̬̥̖̲͞ͅṋ̢̮̬̰̲͉̥̻͡'̞̤̳͕͙̳͠t̷̤̞͚͓̺̟̺͇ͅ ̶̭͇͕̮c̫̯̜͓̬a͡҉͕̝̩͎̱͉̬r̛͙̻̦͕̟͞͝e̸̗̬ ̡̭̥̰͡ͅa̷҉̺͙b̸̛̗̟̼̥͎ơ̢͍̘̮̫ư̪t being able to exist outsid e of the simulation. Sh͈̜̩͜e̬̟͉͉̳͖͈͞ ̛̟̩̜̲̙̟͕w̸͕̟͉͉̗̲͞a͏̣̺̖͔̺s̟̗̯̕ ̻̥̱a̩͔̬̹̫͔̗͝ņ҉̖͖͢ ̴̦͙A͔̳͠I̸̧̩̘͓̪̺̰̰̺͓.͏̠͕̼̜̺̬̖ ̧͚̥̰̥̜̟̹A̱̠̖͎̼͉̩͎ ̧͡͏̳͇ṱ̬̜̥̠̕͝e̘͓̺͞c̵̘h͖̯͎̲n̴͙͙̹͎͚͢͡o̰̩̻̻͇̦̦͙l̨̢̼̗̟͓͖̮̘͕ o͢҉̢͙̦͍̘̰̙̻g̥̳į̧̪̻͕͇̦̲͜c̶̳̲̤̱̬̮̲̳̕a̴͇̦̮͙͖̪̳l̦͚̺̞͕̜͠ ̴̢͙c҉̡̞̫̰̮̹͓͓r̖̰̠͔̹͞͞ͅe̢͚̘͟a̸͔t̮̼͠i͍̱o͏̘̹n͓̪̘͢ ̶̷̛̳͇̳̖b͕͈͢r͈̫̲̙͞͠o̧͏̱͉u͙̻̩g̭̹̖̺͖̜̣͟ht to artificial life using a decea̲̱̟̥̫̭͞ͅşe̺̺͎d͉̥̣̬̬ ̮t̳̤͙̕eeṋ̙̺͟a̶̫̮g̖̮̪e̢ ͓̞͓̤̙̟g͉̩͉̤i͈̜̭̫͍͓r̫̭̖̻̖l͏͈̠͎͈͎ ͉͈̰͎͉̯a̝̦͈͕̱̖s̝̲̟͕ ҉͓̫̠͔̝a̲͔͚͎̣͓ ͉t͉͇̗̤͢eͅm̲̻̼̩̤͇p̹̳̮̗̬͢ḷ͚̼̣̭ͅa̷̻͕̩̠t̻͍e̺̻͈͚ͅ ͘f̛̳̙͔̥̣̻o̥ṛ ̷͉̬h̷̺̠̬̝͔̱̦e̳̣̻̟ṛ ̣͉͕͠interface.

S̡̩   he̢͚̬͉ ̭͎̦͠d̜͙̪̻͉̥ i̡̼dn̞̜̘̟̦̠͚'͉͓̬̣̳̖͓t̗̙̯̣͎̭ ͈b̘̫̠̤̝ę̫̮̬̩̱l͔̻̙͇on̵̝̰̪̞̖g̷͈̻̥̲͈͍ ̶͙̱̮̟o̴u̪̯̩̗̥̭͝ t̜̩̹̰̬s̵̙̼̭i̺̼ d̼̱̪̳e̯͕̙̰ ͕͚̗̻t̶͇̲͚̠͍̪̮h͈̯̲ḙ̥͉͔̜͝ ̦͙s̯i̹̟ m̠̯u̲l̠̯̜̝̗͇a t͕̙̠̟̝͙ͅi͚̺̤o̵͇̙̳n̝͓̪.̲̥̠̥̲̤͘ ̗̣̼    S̶̼̜͍̞͕̜̰͔̃̔ͮ͌ͩ̏̍ͨ͐̔̍͛͐̔͊̔͆̚͢h̞͔̤̯̱̻̦͈̜ͪͪͮͧͨͨͩͬ͡͡e͉͉̹̦̰̞̮̫̝̥̼̬̠̝̮͕̗̞̾͊͌̈͢͟ ̶̊͗̆̑ͧ̐ͭ̈͂͒̂̇ͫ̈̈̆̐̔҉̲̬̦ͅw͔̥̰̤̳̗̬̞͆ͦ̓ͤͥͥ̏̿͡ ă̡̡̧̰̹͚̲̥̗̬̇̑̉ͪ̃͛ͨ̾͑̂͌͐̑̓̍ͮ̔̚͡͡s̘̟̹̦̤̩͖̖̦̪̤͖͖̳̦̞̫̹ͭ̐̋̽͒̆ͫͤ̄̿ n̳̖̰̖̳̙̼͉̟̰̺̰̙͇ͩ̽ͤ̒͘͘͘͞͠'̨̳̩̖̩̞̖̞̺̹ͬ̒̉ͫͫ͆̓̋ͪ̅̏̃̽̉̅̃͘͜͟t̢̳͓͇̥̦̺̫̭̱̞̦̠ͮͭͣͫ̈́̏̋̽̕͘͜ ̶͙͓̞͇̲̠͔̮̜̹̘͕̠̮̯̽ͫ̔ͨ̽͒ͩ͐̒̽ͪ͋͌ͪ͟͡m̵͋͗̇҉͏̧̟̮̯̪̺͉̻̝̳ë̺̹̗̗̮̼̙̰́͑͛̾̐̆̿ͮ̐̇̾ͧ̋̏ͨ͊̚̕͟͢ a͒͗ͮ̃ͦ̎ͯ̂͊͠҉̛̱͎̟͕͔͇̻̻̤̝̠̪ͅņ̵͛͒͂̈ͮͥ͏̝͎̙̖̲̤͉̙͍̫̤̰͕͍̰͘ t̷͔̪̻̙͕͚͈̩̳̘̝͍̟̺̬̤̜̭̾͑̽ͭͥͧ̿ͨ̊̿̈́ͧͤ̓ͨ͜ͅ ̛̖̭̞̬̪̩̦̰̩̝͕̥ͧ̋̅̂̂͊ͮ̊ͮ̃ͬͫ̌ͦ͢͡ͅt̛̫̖͓̟͚͇͖̪̠̳̥̼̦͗̇̓̆̅̓̋̇ͯ̏́ͪ̈̍̚ͅͅo̢̾ͨͤ̊́̐ͦͫͩ̾̂̔ͭͦͥͫ҉̙͉̝͎̲̥̹͍͖͔̯-

ṱ̖̥̱o͕̝̭͚̣͓͔͔-͏̡͓̩͈̭̞̲̩̫͓  
̵̸͕̜͍͜

t̨̼̯̦̗o̢̥̩̺̰̗͈̳͍͘t̵̝̖͚̮̞̠̭o͙̻̦̦̕t̢͇͖͙̟̟̠̻͠ǫ̺͎͢t͙͠o̡̗͚̱͎̜͈t̛̞͢o̶̤͖̗͕̘͝ͅ

̡͍͟ ̧̣͖̬̮͘ ̸̰͓̗̟̲̯̠͉̗͜ ̖͚̠̺ͅ ̸̥͉̟̜͙̠̦͘ ͔̖̮̹̞ ̺̮͚̘̜̭̻̫s̱͍͚̼͈̣̘t͙̹̱͡͠o̢͍̗p̲̗̖̯̯t̥̹̰͍̦̲̲̖͢o̷̮ţ̩̟̳͕̳̻͓̤o̢̗̞̞͉͍͔͚ͅt̷̫͓͜o̷̙̦̥̘͞t̠̦̗̰̺o̴̷̸͕̟̺̣̝ ̶͕̤͉̘̹̳̲ ̢̣͢ ̯̼͉̯̣͠ ̡͍̤̜̘͎̟͝ ̴̣̙͖͈̩͢͟ ̵̥͡ ̗̳ ̛͔̻̞̭̬ ̺̗̪̮͙͙͜͠ ͈̝̘͉̗͎͘͜ ̷͍͔̲̪̱̹̟ ͖̦͈̼̣̬̙̱ͅs̼̖̘̹̖͔̮̕͡t̵̶̗̭̺͚̲̰̱͖ǫ̵̰͚͖̼̭͍̤̳̤͡p̶̡̤͔̳̦̫͖̥͉͝

̴͎̝͙͟b̤̣̞̪̣̰̝͘͜ ̵̷͖̝̱̺ ̨̪g̪͕̠̠͍̳̭̕ ҉̞͇̝̟͖͎͉͙̪͞ ̸͚̕̕ ̫̙ ̢̥̼̲̪̪͔̦ ̹͉̪͙̘̮̬̣͔ ̢̝̣̲̦̩̤̝͟ ̵̥̦̳̺͚̼̦̥̣͘͠ ̸͘҉̞̪ ̶̡̩͙͎̭̫̠͜ ̼̺͍̠̙̼͕ ͓͓̣̠͇̱ ̲̱̫̣̲̫̫̞ ̷̡̢̜̜̠̹͇͍̝͇̝ ̢̦͓̯͙̘̜̖̮͢ ̛̘̤̗̬̣͡ ̮̺͓̗ͅ ̷̘̘̲̳͖ ͔̟͇̕ ҉̵̸̬͈ ̴̡͕̦̻̖ͅ ̳̝̟̗ ̬͍͕͙̝̙̱̼ ͙̜̭͟ ̹̜̱͚̹̯̯͠ ̫̬͖̩̳̼͚̥̕͝͠b̨̪̬̻͈͎̟̰r̷̜̻̗͟͝o̤̠ṱ̹ ̴̪̥͍͖̳͚̩̥̼͟͜ ̡͖̩ ̴͎͕̪͓̦̖͓ ͏̷̖̱͖̺̦̤̥ ̤̘̩ ̟̥̱͍͍̠̩͡ ̨̠͜ ͈̤͇̭̣̺͔͖͉͜ ̱̭ͅḥ̻̼e͞͏͙̹͖̠̺̬r̶̼͉̙̤̪̘̫ͅ

͕͡ţ҉̲̳̲̰̭͉̣̰o̴̤͎̬̰̼̫̼̫ͅt̴҉̞͙̮̠̞ơ̜̻̤̭̼͖

̷̙̣̫̕s͏͇̗͔͇̝t̡͈̮͇̘̺̜͜ ̢̡̤̦͎͉̦̥̩̜̲o͍̼͇̪͘͟ ̷̞͈̪̗̣͎̞͜ ͍̠͙̠̭̦̞͉̤͞ ̜͖̰̦͞ ̱͔ ̟ ̹̼̗ ͔͈̺̕ ͏̷͈ ̰̞p̨̧͖͔̳͖̘͍ͅ ̰̞̜̩͡s͚̭̲̝̺̹͓̣̖̕t҉̸̺̤ǫ̛̦̬̱̺̲̠̹͘p̦ ̙̜͍̯͖s̤̬͈̟t̢͙̗͔̼̪͚͈͠͞o̬̙̮̺̲̮p̟̜̞ ̣̯͟͢͠n҉̡̖̱o̸̩̤̭̯̲̼͢ͅ ̢̣̤̹̩̞n̶̶̴̖̲̣̬̹͕̼ọ̩͖͟t̮̖̪̭̹͘͝

͚̪̩̻͜͞ͅ ̫͕̯̳̩̫̯͈͙ ͎̹ ̡͙̳̝̙̼̲ ̛̤͇̣̰̲̯͕ ̦̫̕ ̘ ̸̷̸̖͚͉̹̲̝ ̶͓̟ ̸̴̪͈͙̖ ͕̜̜͡͞ ̙̭̳͙͔̻̬ͅ ̘̻̩͚̞̜̥̣ ̠̩͙͜ͅ ̴̞͙̝̘͙̦̪͜ ̴͖̖h̡͎̦̙̦̳̗͉͕e̴͚͖̣̰̼ ̴̩̮̪̫͎̮ ͍̦̹̥͉̰̯͡ͅ ̷͎͎͙̦̖͢ ̝͎̩͙̯̮ ̳̤̣̹̮̠̦ ҉̻̭̩ ̸̠̬̗ ̵̷͍̥̠͎̬͙̲͓͙l̵͉̪͓͙̳p̧̧̲̝͓͢

̷̨̝̼̯̭͉͎͔̟l͠҉̦̳̱͓̦͉̥͎̭p̳̠̟̞

҉͍̘͎l̮͇̥ͅp̢̢̣̯͘ ̸̷̲̙̪̻͙͉̱͟ͅ ̳͚̻̞̟͢ ̛̺͎͓̠͚͢ ҉͈̞͡ ̷̤̱̰͎̦̻̯͉̙l̲͡p͏̣̞̤ ͔͢ļ͉̞̤̟̬̦͇p̧̻̯̺͇͍͉͇ͅ ̭̗̰̗͔̟̜l̸̥͚̦̲̯͎̲p͇̟̖̣̺̥͎ ̶̣͍̠͡

̳p̧̭̝̼͚̯p̸̖̟͈̮̞̜̬̱̕

̹͖̜̯̯̰̞͇͍ ̻̣ ̮͚̰ ̶̳̭̖͚̯̻͟ ̶̡̲̯ ̢̭̪ ͚̺͇ ̶͉̼̜͔͡ ̶̞̼̺̞̻͘ ̛͈͈̦͟p̵̖͇͔͔̯̬̝ ̵̢͍̫͙̬̪̮̙ͅ ̢̧̼͇ ̷̶̮͎͙̞̕ ̨̪͖̠̗ ̧̛̤͖͖͍̦͉ ̧͔͔͇̗̦̩̠̥̹͜ ̰͈͠ ̶̼̜̗p̷̦̝̟̝͇͉̮ ̢̢̱̭̯̮̖͇͍ͅͅ ̷̩͎̻ ̸̡̣̙̭͔̮ ̺͔̜͢͝ ̶̻̬ ͉͢͡ ̶̭̗͞ ̢͔̺̯͕͡p̴̩̜̮̬ͅ ̶͏̪̩p̴̡̺̦͚̘̞͞p̶̝͓͓ ͏̗̖̣̣̯ͅp̢̜͓͎̲͈͈p̧̛͇̦̱

̵̧̹͈  
͚̫̥̟

\---

Chiaki jerked abruptly in her seat and Monobear grinned, teeth flashing at the sight of her.

A long moment of silence stretched between the two before the girl spoke softly, voice lilted.

“....What are your proposing?”

"Upupupupu~"

\---

\---

**Act I: End**

**Join in for the second - and final - act with our protag Hinata taking charge of the narrative next chapter.**

\---

\---

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any additions to this work including the final part told through Hinata's POV will be published as separate stories [and added into the series titled 'Rewind' on my profile.](http://archiveofourown.org/series/799803)
> 
>  
> 
>  **TRIVIA:**  
>  \- Chiaki did still attend Sonia’s beach party but wore her hoodie over her swimsuit to hide the glitch on her.  
> \- Saionji didn’t die in the third instance since Mahiru was still alive to tie her kimono.  
> \- Peko went after Chiaki because Monobear manipulated her into thinking she was a threat to Kuzuryuu. Monobear was a bitch.  
> \- Chiaki “I’ve never screamed” Nanami. That came untrue in this fic. Seeing your reflection as Junko can do that to ya.  
> \- In this case they never entered the funhouse. You could argue it’s because the “train” that took them there only had 12 seats and there’s 16 of them… but it’s mostly just down to Monobear changing his plans due to Chiaki’s interference.

**Author's Note:**

> Any additions to this work including the final part told through Hinata's POV will be published as separate stories [and added into the series titled 'Rewind' on my profile.](http://archiveofourown.org/series/799803)
> 
> **TRIVIA **:  
>  \- Chiaki did still attend Sonia’s beach party but wore her hoodie over her swimsuit to hide the glitch on her.  
> \- Hiyoko didn’t die in the third instance since Mahiru was still alive to tie her kimono.  
> \- Peko went after Chiaki because Monobear manipulated her into thinking she was a threat to Fuyuhiko. Monobear was a bitch.  
> \- Chiaki “I’ve never screamed” Nanami. That came untrue in this fic. Seeing your reflection as Junko can do that to ya.  
> \- In this case they never entered the funhouse. You could argue it’s because the “train” that took them there only had 12 seats and there’s 16 of them… but it’s mostly just down to Monobear changing his plans due to Chiaki’s interference.****


End file.
